Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1887-04-21
FROM A SECRET GRAVE.
Lincoln's Remains Removed and Reir
TERED.


TERED.
The remains of President and Mrs. Lin
coin were privately taken from their Sc
cret resting place on the morning Of the
14th, and Inferred In the north vault Of
the Lincoln monument In Oak Ridge ceme-
terry, near Springfield, Ill. Less than q
dozen persons, members of the Lincoln
monument association and Lincoln Guard
of Honor were present. For years the
whereabouts Of the remains of the great
president and his wife have been visited
in mystery in anxiety that they would be
stolen to obtain huge ransom fnr their
return. The actual attempt to carry off
the bodies in 1876 was the moving cause
of the formation of the Guard Of Honor,
which organization secreted them, and
surrendered the charge OH the 14th. Great
care was taken to keep the event pro-
found secret. At the appointed hour
few besides the little knot of guards
were present. The secret gave was
iirectly under the north base of
the Obelisk, about thirty feet from
the north entrance, but only accessible
through the south door, A door on the
north Of the hole where the Lincoln relics
are kept, leading through long passage
first east, then north, then west and then
south to a recess. Here, about three feet
below the surface of the floor, were de-
DOsited the remains of Abraham Lincoln
md his wife. The body of Mr.. Lincoln
was In a walnut coffin lined with an air
light lead lining about one-eight OF an
inch thick. The walnut coffin was In a
cedar box, and the cedar box was inclOsed
in pine box. Mrs. Lincoln's remains
were similarly lnclosed.
Twenty -two years ago Lincoln was shot
When the guards with the help of few
aborers, had exhumed the coffin and the
Presidents was removed, his face was
'een to be in remarkable state Of preser-
,ation. Those who stood around, and had
Known Lincoln when alive, easily dis
erned the features. They were very dis
met. The silver plate OH the coffin lid
was bright. On 1t was inscribed the fol-
lowing:
Abraham Lincoln,
Sixteenth President United States.
Born February ~, 1909.
Died April Is, 1865.
While the remains of Mr.. Lincoln were
exposed to view, Gen. Reese, president of
The guard of honor, turned the remains
# Mr.. Lincoln over to the Lincoln mOnu-
nent association. Acertifcate was signed
~ the members of the guards of honor
CERTIFYING that the remains in the coffin
were those received from the Lin
DIN monument association In 1878.
The monument association made
)ut certificate signed by the
members for the records of the as
,ociation, declaring the remains to be those
If Abraham Lincoln. The undertaken was
hen directed TO seal the coffin, and Leon
Hopkins, plumber, sealed 1t up. The
offn was then taken out by the workmen
md carried around to the vault on the
north side. The members of the two asso-
iations and q stranger or two who hap
)ened TO be looking at the monument fol-
owed. In the north vault the floor had
,een taken up. A hole eight feet long by
tx feet wide and five and one-half Deep
Jrcked up and cemented, had been pre-
pared. The Presidents coffin had been
placed In this grave on the west SIDE The
:offn containing Mrs. Lincoln's remains,
which had been brought from the secret
grave before the other coffin was carried
around, was then brought 10 the vault and
placed on the east side Of her husband. A
brick arch was then built over the collins.
This was covered with hydraulic cement,
mixed with small broken rock. Two
guards will be on duty at the tomb until
the cement becomes hard.
The marble sarcophagus, I'm which the
public have supposed the remains to be, Is
still in the vault. Without further cere-
mony the remains of husband and wife
were left to molder together in the grave.